Bargain Friday’s TPS Report: Pintuck Ponte Jumper

Our daily TPS reports suggest one piece of work-appropriate attire in a range of prices.

Reader A clued us in to this really cute dress, one of many that’s on sale right now at Athleta. We like the long length of it, and like the ballerina vibe we’re getting. We’d probably wear it layered for the office — camisole or turtleneck beneath, with a cardigan or blazer on top of it for the office. Was $98, now $49.50 at Athleta in sizes XXS-2x and in colors black, gray and brown. Athleta Pintuck Ponte Jumper

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Comments

I like this a lot. I especially like how the model wears it. Very unique. Great price point. I am 5’2 though.. so this might be a little long for me (I am guessing the model is on the taller side). Also, I am not familiar with this brand, and I wonder what the quality is like.

I love this! It seems like one of those perfect dresses you can wear anywhere. And, if it’s too long, it won’t cost much to hem it at the tailors. I just wonder if they have stores & if I can go try this on. I am never sure size wise, even when something “runs true to size” . . . Which size?? I feel like there’s at least 2 different standards now (one where I am sometimes swimming in a Small, and one where I am barely fitting into a Medium).

They don’t have stores. Crap. How small is the small?? I am concerned about any sizing that begins with XXS — this can only mean that what they now label XXS would have been a Small even 10-15 years ago.

I have to agree–I must be missing something because this looks appropriate if you are a kindergarten teacher. Maybe a weekend look? Then again, if you do as Corporette suggests, and hide it with a cardigan, maybe no one will notice you’re wearing a jumper.

I’m sold on the ‘wrinkle-free’ element. Couldn’t wear it to court, but if you’re going to be on the road for a while and need a go-to dress that can be worn with a button-down and blazer for work, or on its own for dinners, this looks great to me. Plus, it has a belt (though I think I’d substitute an actual belt rather than the tie) so it’s not a shapeless as some jumpers. Thumbs up.

As far as size, hard to tell. It’s part of the old navy/gap family, which typically has my medium sized body swimming in a size 2, so …

I’ve ordered from Athleta before, and I have loved some stuff, hated other stuff. What I’ve consistently found is that a lot of their stuff isn’t cut for those of us on the shorter end of the scale, and unless they’ve changed their sizing recently, they run more “Banana Republic” than “Old Navy” (meaning, they run true to size, or sometimes a little small, rather than running a little big).

I made it through three pregnancies as a practicing lawyer without wearing a jumper. I’m not about to start now.

That said, I am intrigued by some of the casual dresses I see on the Athleta web site. They’re so cute. And I have my Banana credit card information saved on the Gap sites, so it’s just way too easy to pull the trigger.